Survey to ascertain illegal settlements in govt-owned lands in EKW starts

Kolkata: The state Directorate of Land Records and Surveys (DLRS) has initiated a survey under the request of the East Kolkata Wetlands Management Authority (EKWMA) to ascertain illegal settlements in government-owned lands in East Kolkata Wetland (EKW) area.

The EKWMA wants details of landholding of all government departments such as Public Works Department (PWD), Irrigation and Waterways, Kolkata Municipal Corporation, Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation, Panchayats and Rural Development department and District Magistrates separately other than District Collector in each mouza map in the EKW.

It has also sought areas of all government land demarcated in each mouza map and details of illegal settlements (without patta) or encroachments within the government-owned land in each mouza, if any.The move has been prompted in the wake of the Calcutta High Court and the National Green Tribunal directing the state government to prevent encroachments in EKW.

“The exercise of detailed land survey is going on in full swing,” Sumit Gupta, District Magistrate , South 24 Parganas said.

The EKWMA had already received land ownership details of 36 mouzas out of the total 37 mouzas of the EKW from DLRS.

The land ownership of Barga (leasehold) land, Patta land and the land in the name of the District Collector of each mouza has been provided separately but the EKWMA needs land ownership details of other government departments to ascertain illegal settlements in these government-owned lands within EKW.

There are 110 villages under 37 mouzas with the total population within the EKW area being 1.5 lakh. EKW, a Ramsar site, regarded as the kidney of Kolkata is capable of naturally treating wastewater.

It is not only responsible for preventing the city from massive inundation in case of heavy rain but also ensures that groundwater depletion does not emerge as a major threat to the city.

Spread across 12,000 hectares of land, EKW is a miracle of nature as it is capable of naturally treating wastewater to the extent of 910 million litres per day. The place is known for its rich biodiversity and rare aquatic animals. Marsh Mongoose was discovered by the Zoological Survey of India from this wetland itself.

However, in the recent past, this natural sponge that absorbs excess rainfall and does its bit to reduce pollution has sometimes come under threat due to the exponential expansion of real-estate projects.